Rep. James Comer says a House investigation found “no evidence” that President Joe Biden participated in the last-minute pardons issued before he left office, arguing the clemencies signed by autopen should be treated as “null and void.” The Kentucky Republica
On Monday morning, Rep. James Comer framed the last-minute pardons from the final days of the Biden presidency as something Congress should treat as invalid—because he said there is no evidence Biden was involved in the process.
Appearing on “Mornings with Maria,” the House Oversight Committee chair, a Republican from Kentucky, said his committee investigated “the pardon that Joe Biden gave — all the pardons.” He then delivered his bottom line: “we concluded Joe Biden wasn’t at the table.”
Comer argued that the record shows “there’s no evidence that Biden was ever involved in the pardon process.” He pointed to what he described as the absence of direct contact. saying. “There were no meetings with Joe Biden.” Under his reading of the Constitution. “the president has sole authority to grant pardons. ” but he said the timing and mechanics don’t change what the committee found: “They were signed by the autopen. but there’s no evidence. and that was based on all the depositions we had with all the key people in the White House during the Biden administration.”.
He added, “There’s no evidence Joe Biden participated in the decision-making of the pardon process.”
Host Maria Bartiromo pressed Comer on whether a pardon can be legitimate if it was signed by autopen—a mechanical device used to replicate a human signature. Comer replied that, in his view, the question isn’t only about the device. “Well. I don’t think it’s so much the autopen as it is the fact that there were never any meetings that Joe Biden had with his staff on these pardons. ” he said. adding that “the only pardon that Biden signed was for his son. Hunter Biden.”.
Bartiromo’s follow-up challenge stayed anchored on what, exactly, counts as involvement. Comer returned to his committee’s theme: “But let’s take the autopen off the table. I know there’s a lot about the autopen. I don’t want that to be the defense.”
His argument, as he laid it out, was that the lack of interaction in the process is dispositive. “The defense is. there were never any scheduled meetings on his calendar. there was not a single person involved in the pardon process. in the decision-making on who authorized the autopen that ever met with Joe Biden and discussed the individual pardons.”.
Comer also responded to Biden’s own explanation. He said Biden told The New York Times last year that he made every clemency decision himself. and Biden pointed out that presidents—“including Donald Trump”—have used autopens. Comer, however, said that point does not overcome what he described as evidentiary gaps from the Oversight Committee’s work.
“That alone is more than enough evidence to declare all the pardons issued by Joe Biden in the last day of his presidency null and void,” Comer said.
The dispute lands amid the political fallout from those final-day actions. In the last moments of his presidency. Biden issued preemptive pardons to several of his family members in addition to Dr. Anthony Fauci. He also issued pardons to former Gen. Mark Milley and members of the House committee that investigated the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, among others. Those pardons were met with bipartisan backlash.
What Comer wants now is a step further than criticism. By calling for the pardons to be treated as “null and void. ” he’s using the Oversight Committee’s investigation to push a question into the open: not just whether the pardons were controversial. but whether they can withstand scrutiny over how—if at all—they were personally authorized within the White House process.
James Comer House Oversight Committee Biden pardons autopen Hunter Biden Anthony Fauci Mark Milley Jan. 6 committee Maria Bartiromo
So the pardons are basically fake then? Autopen sounds like a scam.
I’m not even sure what autopen means but if Congress says “null and void” doesn’t that mean they can just undo it? Seems like a stretch though.
They keep saying “no meetings” like that proves Biden didn’t do anything. Presidents have aides and stuff, so maybe he was involved without meeting anyone in person? Also how long are these investigations, forever?
Comer calls it null and void but I doubt it’ll matter. If the president signs it, it’s the president signing it, even if it’s autopen. Unless they’re saying he wasn’t really president at the moment? Like idk, seems political word games. Autopen or not, the timing is sus but “no evidence” is kinda doing a lot here.